[ OP-ED COLUMN ]

MLK Paraphrase Changes Meaning

By Glenn Marston

Published: Sunday, January 20, 2013 at 3:32 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, January 20, 2013 at 3:32 a.m.

WASHINGTON | Monday will be Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The holiday celebrates the birth of King on Jan. 15, 1929. It remembers him as the United States' preeminent civil rights leader and recalls his assassination April 4, 1968. One of the points of focus Monday will be the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington.

The memorial is in West Potomac Park on the northwest shore of the Tidal Basin. It falls on a line between the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial.

Fourteen quotations from King, the inspirational speaker, are chiseled into the Inscription Wall. It is a 450-foot stretch of dark-gray granite.

The centerpiece of the memorial is a 30-foot-tall white-granite block, the Stone of Hope. On its face is a sculpture of King, standing with his arms folded, overlooking the basin.

Each side of the memorial contains an inscription: On the right is "Out of the Mountain of Despair, a Stone of Hope." On the left is "I Was a Drum Major for Justice, Peace, and Righteousness."

The second inscription has become such a source of criticism that it will be removed. That decision is a lesson for writers, editors — and sculptors. Rather than a direct quote, it is a paraphrase — an indirect quote — shortened from the original: "If you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter."

A paraphrase must retain the meaning of the full, direct quotation. This did not.

An editor's consternation when an error is set in type is one thing. At least a correction is straightforward. When an error is set in stone, a sculptor's options are limited.

In this case, a series of sculpted lines provides a way to remove the inscription and appropriately rework the surface.

<p>WASHINGTON | Monday will be Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The holiday celebrates the birth of King on Jan. 15, 1929. It remembers him as the United States' preeminent civil rights leader and recalls his assassination April 4, 1968. One of the points of focus Monday will be the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington.</p><p>The memorial is in West Potomac Park on the northwest shore of the Tidal Basin. It falls on a line between the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial.</p><p>Fourteen quotations from King, the inspirational speaker, are chiseled into the Inscription Wall. It is a 450-foot stretch of dark-gray granite.</p><p>The centerpiece of the memorial is a 30-foot-tall white-granite block, the Stone of Hope. On its face is a sculpture of King, standing with his arms folded, overlooking the basin.</p><p>Each side of the memorial contains an inscription: On the right is "Out of the Mountain of Despair, a Stone of Hope." On the left is "I Was a Drum Major for Justice, Peace, and Righteousness."</p><p>The second inscription has become such a source of criticism that it will be removed. That decision is a lesson for writers, editors — and sculptors. Rather than a direct quote, it is a paraphrase — an indirect quote — shortened from the original: "If you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter."</p><p>A paraphrase must retain the meaning of the full, direct quotation. This did not.</p><p>An editor's consternation when an error is set in type is one thing. At least a correction is straightforward. When an error is set in stone, a sculptor's options are limited.</p><p>In this case, a series of sculpted lines provides a way to remove the inscription and appropriately rework the surface.</p><p>[ Glenn Marston is editorial page editor. E-mail: glenn.marston@theledger.com. Phone: 863-802-7600. ]</p>